MASSP News Center

Technology can be used as an aid for solving the dropout dilemma according to eSchool News. Educators nationwide are concerned about stemming the tide of high school dropouts. New data suggest the steep economic impact that dropping out of school can have on individuals, and on the economy as a whole. But whether it’s for reasons of economic competitiveness, or simply as a moral imperative, giving students alternative paths to graduation is a top priority for many school leaders —and, fortunately, technology can help. Click here to read the entire article.

Governor Granholm has proclaimed the week of February 10, 2008 as PRINCIPALS’ WEEK in Michigan. We at MASSP salute each and every administrator for all the hard work and dedication you display every day for the students of Michigan and the communities they represent. You all deserve a gold star for your efforts. Read the Governor’s Proclamation and enjoy YOUR week!

If you want to be involved in the association at the next level, have you considered running for office on the Board of Directors?

There are three different ways for you to be a member of the Board:

1st – Be a regional representative. Be the voice of your region. MASSP has 12 regions. The Region Chair serves two years and can be re-elected for more. You will be out your building three days during the year to attend board meetings. It is expected you will develop and host regional association activities. The even numbered regions are up for election in 2008. Want to learn more? Running to be a Regional Representative

2nd – Be the voice of your special area: assistant principal commission, middle level commission, high school commission, and career tech commission. This is a two-year term. You’ll be the voice of, for example, middle schools. You’ll advise staff on programming for middle level activities and programs done by the association. You’ll help create association surveys of our middle level members. You will be out your building three days during the year to attend board meetings. Want to learn more? Running to be a Commission Representative

3rd – Be the President of the Association. You are the official voice of Michigan’s Secondary School Principal. You, with support of the Board, set the policy agenda for the association. You set the theme for association conferences and approve their content. You are the voice of the Michigan principal at the national level. Working with the Executive Director you met with state policy makers, represent Michigan principals on special committees that work with the State Superintendent of Instruction. This officer position will take you out of your building up to ten days during the year. It is recommended you have served on the Board of Directors prior to seeking this position. This is a three-year office. Want to learn more? Running to become President-Elect

Begin the process! Serve the profession.

Want to know more about the governance of the association and the election process? Go to: Opportunity to Serve on the MASSP Board of Directors

Please “get your paper work” into the association during the month of February.

By Jim Ballard
MASSP Executive Director
This legislative process really has seasons. There are times when legislation is developed and sent to the floor for consideration, and times to “get’r done.” June and late December are the times when the pressure is on to “make it a law.” So, this is the time of year we try to get our ideas in play so they are ready for the “passage” season.

Three topics have our attention. It’s my goal to accomplish these things this legislative season.

MME Assessment

• Amend the MME Assessment program to include the Workforce Ready Certificate.
• Allow students who have a MME score, but did not qualify for the up-front Promise Grant to retake only the ACT® portion of the MME to qualify for the award. This proposal will save millions of state dollars.
• Limit the growth and size of the state wrap-around portion of the MME.

Personal Curriculum

• Amend the personal curriculum language in the Michigan Merit Standard to include an off-ramp. This ramp would be open to students who, because of lack of credits, have little hope of receiving a Michigan approved high school diploma. The ramp would take them into a program that at completion would give them certification in the work place. The program would also include intervention to gain reading for understanding.

Principal Autonomy

• We’re going to run the flag up the legislative flagpole to test the waters for building principal autonomy. We will propose that if the school is not meeting AYP standards, the building principal would have more rights regarding staffing, budgeting, school improvement plans, and be given an extended employment contract that builds confidence for leadership.

A recent poll of members (less than twenty responded) showed that the respondents were equally divided on whether this is a good idea. We’re going to go softly on this issue. We know this will be part of the Small High School agenda the Governor recently announced in her State of the State Speech.

The best way to keep up-to-date on how we’re doing is to monitor our website. We post news daily and we send you a summary of the previous week every Monday morning.

From the Executive Director
Jim Ballard

The next ten weeks is the season for non-renewal for school administrator employment contracts. If your contract is at risk, please call us early in the process.

Please, don’t wait. More than once I’ve had members call asking for help and telling me that the Board meeting was scheduled that afternoon!

Please, know your contract. You wouldn’t believe the members we speak with who don’t have a contract, don’t know where their contract is, or haven’t read their contract.

What MASSP Does
You will be given the phone number and ID number to contact a labor attorney. He/she will assist you in this difficult and emotional process. The association pays for the first two and half hours (we’re billed for $450) of legal counsel. If you need additional time and support, you will be billed for an additional $250. If more legal time is needed, the MASSP checkbook will pay the balance up to $5,000. Your cost is no more than $250.

If you’re a combination MASSP/NASSP member, NASSP has a $500 deductible, with what MASSP and you pay, meets this deductible. Then you seek payment from NASSP for the balance. They have a floating amount based upon years of membership. MASSP does no have this. We just pay the balance of what NASSP hasn’t paid.

Here’s the law that covers non-renewal of employment contracts for school administrators from the Revised School Code:

380.1229 Employment of superintendent and administrators; notification of contract nonrenewal; meeting with board.

Sec. 1229.
(1) The board of a school district, other than a school district that was organized as a primary school district during the 1995-1996 school year, or intermediate school district shall employ a superintendent of schools, who shall meet the requirements of section 1246. The superintendent shall not be a member of the board. Employment of a superintendent shall be by written contract. The term of the superintendent’s contract shall be fixed by the board, not to exceed 5 years. If written notice of nonrenewal of the contract of a superintendent is not given at least 90 days before the termination of the contract, the contract is renewed for an additional 1-year period.
(2) The board of a school district or intermediate school district may employ assistant superintendents, principals, assistant principals, guidance directors, and other administrators who do not assume tenure in that position under Act No. 4 of the Public Acts of the Extra Session of 1937, being sections 38.71 to 38.191 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. The employment shall be by written contract. The term of the employment contract shall be fixed by the board, not to exceed 3 years. The board shall prescribe the duties of a person described in this subsection. If written notice of nonrenewal of the contract of a person described in this subsection is not given at least 60 days before the termination date of the contract, the contract is renewed for an additional 1-year period.
(3) A notification of nonrenewal of contract of a person described in subsection (2) may be given only for a reason that is not arbitrary or capricious. The board shall not issue a notice of nonrenewal under this section unless the affected person has been provided with not less than 30 days’ advance notice that the board is considering the nonrenewal together with a written statement of the reasons the board is considering the nonrenewal. After the issuance of the written statement, but before the nonrenewal statement is issued, the affected person shall be given the opportunity to meet with not less than a majority of the board to discuss the reasons stated in the written statement. The meeting shall be open to the public or a closed session, as the affected person elects under section 8 of the open meetings act, Act No. 267 of the Public Acts of 1976, being section 15.268 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. If the board fails to provide for a meeting with the board, or if a court finds that the reason for nonrenewal is arbitrary or capricious, the affected person’s contract is renewed for an additional 1-year period. This subsection does not apply to the nonrenewal of the contract of a superintendent of schools described in subsection (1).

A divided House Education Committee—split by timing questions rather than concept—has reported legislation that would increase the dropout age to 18.

The measure, House Bill 4042, would require students currently in the 7th Grade to complete all graduation requirements or attain the age of 18 to leave school. The issue was a topic highlighted by Governor Granholm in her sixth State of the State Address.

Moving the bill on a partisan 12-6 vote, the members of the House Education Committee disagreed over which aspect of the program should come first. Republicans argued that without alternative education programs for failing students to help them achieve graduation requirements the bill would not achieve its goal. They also expressed concern the bill and its intent—while laudable—would divert resources to students who did not want to be in class at the expense of those who did.

Democrats—supported by testimony from witnesses representing the educational community—argued the measure would force school districts to implement alternative education programs for students at risk for dropping out.

By Jim Ballard
MASSP Executive Director

December 27, 2007

Governor Granholm:

Thank you for the invitation to be a member of your high school advisory committee. Like you, the members of the Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals believe the economic future of our state rests on a well-trained and educated workforce. Like you, we want to be a part of not just of solving the dropout problem, but also of getting far more of our young people into and through postsecondary education.

Recent headlines proclaiming 98 of Michigan’s high schools as Dropout Factories are deeply disturbing to our members. While the statistics below are not 100 percent precise, they are the best estimates we currently have of locating where Michigan’s dropout problems are most severe. We applaud your interest in attacking the problem and want very much to partner with you as you move forward. It is important to us, however, that the solutions match the scale of the problem.

So far, the major idea on the table is to create some new small high schools. We have no problem with that approach, as far as it goes. That is, there is some evidence that small high schools - especially if they use the early college idea as a strategy to help disadvantaged youngsters aim at something higher - can indeed salvage some youngsters who would ordinarily leave high school without completing a diploma.

That said, we should all be clear that establishing a few new small high schools is NOT going to solve Michigan’s high school dropout problem. Indeed, if size alone were a solution, Michigan - where the average high school has only about 650 students - should already have one of the highest high school completion rates in the country.

Here is what we know about Michigan’s current “Dropout Factories”:

• 44 percent are small high schools with fewer than 800 students.
• 36 of the 98 dropout factories are what pass for “large” high schools in Michigan (more than 1,200 students, but a far cry from the schools of 3,000-4,000 that are common in California or Texas). Please note, however, that 11 of the schools with the strongest graduation rates (promoting power of 90% of more) are also large high schools.
• The majority of the dropout factories (55%) have high concentrations of poor and minority students.
• 17 of the dropout factories are in rural areas; 37 are in the suburbs and 44 in cities.

You see the problem is clearly not just the size of the high school, nor is it confined to urban areas. So a few new small high schools in urban areas is not likely to solve the problem.

So what else needs to happen? To us, the answer should be clear; get serious about making the new high school polices that you worked so hard to get into place actually work!

Governor Granholm, you led state government to adopt a state policy to increase academic rigor in Michigan’s high schools. My organization strongly supported that new policy. But our members need help in making it work. Indeed, if new statewide strategies are not put in place to help us ensure student success in meeting the Michigan Merit Standard, many of us feel our public schools will become Factories for Failure.

So what are the pieces of such a strategy? We suggest four critical pieces:

• Aggressive redesign of the all-important ninth grade.
• A new early warning system that would couple assessment data with attendance data and grades to flag potential dropouts early on, and organize immediate interventions.
• A dropout recovery system modeled on the approaches used so successfully in Portland, Oregon.
• Highly focused training and supports for the teachers assigned to teach courses most likely to slow students down on their path to graduation.

Let me say just a little bit about each one.

Ninth Grade Redesign:
The K-12 system, much like the medical system, has points of transition. The most important are: third to fourth grade, sixth to seventh grade, and entering the ninth grade.

Ninth grade transition is hugely important. The schools that have focused on ninth grade interventions have seen remarkable success in keeping students in school and on schedule to earn a diploma.

An aggressive ninth grade intervention program at Patterson High School in Maryland, designed by researchers in the Talent Development Program at Johns Hopkins University, resulted in the following:

• 9th grade attendance improved by 9.4 percentage points (from 65.6 to 75 percent).
• Attendance school-wide went up 6.1 percentage points (from 71 t0 77 percent).
• 9th grade promotion went from 47.3 to 69.1 percent.
• Teachers’ perceptions of school changed dramatically.

There are a variety of elements that are necessary to achieve these results, including a structured “catch up” curriculum for students who are behind. Our schools need help like this in redesigning their ninth grade programs.

Early Warning Systems:
We suggest you put in place a strategy of transition benchmarks with a tightly framed early warning system. A good early warning system would require that schools evaluate student data - attendance, tardiness, grades and test scores - at the end of 6th grade and before the 9th grade. At each transition point, if available data suggests the student is heading for trouble, an aggressive intervention program should be required.

Such a system will be particularly helpful in focusing needed attention on boys, who research says are now overwhelmingly more likely than girls to drop out. With boys, in particular, looking at the test data is not sufficient. This more holistic look at each child will help our schools focus fast on the children most likely to eventually drop out.

Dropout Recovery
Research tells us that within two weeks of dropping out most students regret their decision. We need to give them an opportunity to come right back.

Sometimes, all it takes is a phone call inviting them back. But for students who need more customized education environments, Michigan should take a careful look at the Community College-based model of recovery in place in Portland, Oregon.

Support for Teachers in Core Courses

The Michigan Merit Standard has not, to date, brought in support for the classroom teacher. That’s a problem. Most of our teachers already do just fine with the students who come to them with strong academic skills. But we are asking them now to succeed with students whose skills are not strong.

We need to bring in high quality help, including both content-related help (curriculum support, model lessons and assignments) and help with instructional strategies more likely to help low-skilled students meet the Michigan Merit Standard.

Some of this might not be as sexy as a set of brand new schools, with all the bells, ribbons, and hoopla. But it is hugely important work, and far more likely to really fix our dropout problem at scale.

Governor Granholm, you demonstrated great courage in putting Michigan at the forefront of the country in the effort to make the high school diploma really matter. Reducing dropouts isn’t a different problem; rather, it’s about making this policy really work. Phase two of the Michigan Merit Standard should establish a relationship of caring between the standard and the students and their teachers. We think these interventions would take us squarely in that direction.

Respectfully,

Jim Ballard

Examples of Successful Programs for consideration
Intervention models:
1. Talent Development High Schools
2. Evaluation of Adolescent Literacy Intervention Strategies
3. Career Academies
4. Scaling Up First Things First

Recovery Model
Portland School District Dropout Recovery Model

Legal Implications for Searching Student Cell Phones

By Lisa Swem
Attorney, Thrun Law Firm, P.C.

Most schools regulate student cell phone use. Students who violate cell phone rules may be subject to disciplinary consequences, including confiscation of the cell phone. May school officials lawfully “search” the confiscated cell phone to look at stored text messages, photographs, videos, and logs of incoming and outgoing calls? Clearly, the circumstances of the search must satisfy the T.L.O. standard. Not as clear, however, is whether such a search violates federal or Michigan laws regarding stored electronic communications.

Search and Seizure. In New Jersey v T.L.O., 469 US 325 (1985), the United States Supreme Court explained how the Fourth Amendment applies when school administrators carry out searches and seizures to investigate alleged violations of school rules. The Court explained that a search is reasonable only if it is “justified at its inception” and “reasonable in its scope.” The Court defined the reasonableness test as follows:

“[A] search of a student by a teacher or other school officials will be ‘justified at its inception’ when there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that the search will turn up evidence that the student has violated or is violating either the law or the rules of the school. Such a search will be permissible in its scope when the measures adopted are reasonably related to the objectives of the search and not excessively intrusive in light of the age and sex of the student and the nature of the infraction.”

Accordingly, the determination of whether the T.L.O. standard has been met will depend on the facts of the particular situation.

Case Decision. In Klump v Nazareth Area Sch Dist, 425 F Supp 2d 622 (ED Pa, 2006), a federal district court denied the school’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a student whose cell phone was searched. Students at Nazareth Area High School (Pennsylvania) were permitted to carry, but not use or display, cell phones during school hours. When Christopher Klump’s cell phone fell out of his pocket, a teacher confiscated the phone. Subsequently, the teacher and the Assistant Principal used Christopher’s phone to call nine students listed in his phone directory to determine whether they were also violating the school’s cell phone policy. The teacher and AP next accessed Christopher’s text messages and voice mail. Finally, the two used the cell phone, without identifying themselves, to have an Instant Messaging conversation with Christopher’s younger brother.

Christopher’s parents filed a 10-count lawsuit against the school district and school officials, seeking compensatory and punitive damages for the alleged unconstitutional search, violation of the Pennsylvania Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act, invasion of privacy, and defamation. In response, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

Although some parts of the lawsuit were dismissed, other claims were found to be viable. The court ruled that the student had stated a claim for the alleged violation of his right to be free from an unreasonable search. While school officials were justified in seizing Christopher’s cell phone for violation of school policy, there was no basis for them to search the text and voice mail messages stored on the phone. As for the Pennsylvania Wiretap Act claim, the court ruled that the student’s case could go forward based on the claim of unlawful access to the stored voice mail and text message communications. The parties later settled the lawsuit for an undisclosed amount of money.

Michigan and Federal Statutes. The unauthorized access to a stored electronic communication could trigger the violation of Michigan and Federal criminal statutes. The Michigan Penal Code, in part, states:

(2) A person shall not willfully and maliciously read or copy any message from any telegraph, telephone line, wire, cable, computer network, computer program, or computer system, or telephone or other electronic medium of communication that the person accessed without authorization.

(3) A person shall not willfully and maliciously make unauthorized use of any electronic medium of communication, including the internet or a computer, computer program, computer system, or computer network, or telephone.
MCL 750.540(2)-(3) (emphasis supplied)
Likewise, the federal Stored Wire and Electronic Communications Act has penalties for accessing, without (or in excess of) authorization, an electronic communications service facility and thereby obtaining access to a wire or electronic communication in electronic storage. 18 USC § 2701(a).

While the statutory language could be broad enough to cover the unauthorized reading of text messages on a cell phone, there are no reported case decisions addressing this issue under the Michigan or federal statutes.

Conclusion. Administrators may lawfully confiscate student cell phones in circumstances where school rules are violated. For Fourth Amendment purposes, school officials should assume that the student has a reasonable expectation of privacy as to the information stored in the cell phone, e.g., phone numbers, messages (text and voice), photographs, videos. Accordingly, the ability to lawfully search the cell phone is contingent upon satisfying the T.L.O. reasonable suspicion and scope standards. Nonetheless, it remains to be seen as to whether an unauthorized search of a student’s cell phone triggers a violation of the Michigan or federal statutes addressing stored electronic communications. Be careful out there!

*Personal Curriculum Update Webinar–Only a few seats left! November 13, 2007  3 - 4 PM Online

*Classroom Discipline–Establishing Respect and Responsibility–CLOSED. November 14, 2007  9 AM - 3 PM MELG Building, Lansing, MI
NEW Session Added by Popular Demand–REGISTER EARLY! February 19, 2008   9 AM - 3 PM MELG Building, Lansing, MI

*Performance Appraisals Made Easy November 28, 2007 9 AM - 3 PM, March 5, 2008   9 AM - 12 PM MELG Building, Lansing, MI

*The Student Responsibility Center Overview Webinar December 10, 2007   3 - 4 PM Online

*Class # 1 Principal Boot Camp Mid-Year Review December 11, 2007  8:30 AM -  5 PM   MELG Building, Lansing, MI

*NEW PRINCIPAL BOOT CAMP CLASS #2 NOW RECRUITING!

*We are currently recruiting for Class #2 to begin in January, 2008 (if interest is there).  Email Diane McMillan if you are interested in joining Class #2.

*Suspensions and Expulsions for Special Education Students Webinar December 12, 2007   3 - 4 PM Online

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER OR THE SEMINARS & CONFERENCES LINK.

A MICHIGAN CLASSROOM IS GOING TO DIG FOR DINOSAURS in Thermopolis, Wyoming!

Yes, a week digging dinosaurs in Thermopolis, Wyoming at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center.

Go to www.paleojoe.com or www.MyFoxDetroit.com to enter–open for any Michigan school, grades 1-6…any teacher, any parent, any student can enter to win. The more entries, the better chance you have!

The contest runs for 6 weeks and ends Nov. 26th. Each week a new set of 4 questions, based on the PaleoJoe Dinosaur Detective Club books, comes out and teachers, parents and students can answer–the more replies your classroom has, the better chance you have of being selected. Get your classroom and kids involved.

There is also this fantastic Dinosaur Curriculum that you can download and use in the classroom–it is on the contest site page–math, science, language arts, etc.–over 200 pages worth to use in your classroom. Transportation provided by Blue Lakes Charters–Michigan biggest and best charter bus fleet.

PaleoJoe was just at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center and they found an Apatosaurus with 130 teeth from a meat eater surrounding it ! Your class will see this and have the chance to discover their own dinosaur !!

Register today for this once-in-a-lifetime experience and tell everyone you know–go to www.paleojoe.com or www.MyFoxDetroit.com

Good Luck!

A new publication by the National Education Association Health Information Network (NEA HIN), School Crisis Guide: Help and Healing in a Time of Crisis, is being released to coincide with America’s Safe Schools Week and Bullying Prevention Week.

You are encouraged to use it in educating the public about comprehensive efforts in the nation’s public school system to keep students and school employees safe. Schools and districts will find the Crisis Guide helpful as they review their own safety plans and ready themselves for emergencies. The Crisis Guide is available online and it can be ordered in hard copy at cost.

Overview

• While schools are among the safest places for children, it’s essential that all educators know how to handle crisis situations.
• This comprehensive guide includes three sections: how to prepare for emergencies; how to respond effectively; and how to help students and staff recover as quickly as possible and return to a “new normal.”
• The Crisis Guide provides advice on handling both natural and man made disasters.
• The focus of the Crisis Guide is school safety, and it includes a section on violence prevention.
• The Crisis Guide is now available on the Web at www.neahin.org and is also available in print at cost.
• Parents and caregivers can be given assurance that the Crisis Guide is available to help schools be better prepared to handle emergencies
• The Crisis Guide was developed with the help of a generous grant from the Sprint Foundation.

The online Crisis Guide:

• is free and available for anyone to use on the web or to download.
• is easy to navigate, so users have immediate access to the information they need – whether planning for a crisis or in the midst of handling one.
• features numerous tools, tip sheets and links to web-based resources for all aspects of crisis management, from planning to response to recovery.
• will be updated regularly to reflect new information and best practices.

The online Crisis Guide provides comprehensive information on media relations during a crisis.

To ensure the needs of both the media and the school are met, the Guide outlines how to develop communications protocols with the media. The Crisis Guide provides tips on working with the media during and after the crisis, including how to handle the first anniversary of a crisis. Tools include templates for press releases, frequently asked questions, media interview request forms and school fact sheets.The print version of the Crisis Guide provides a hands-on resource for educators, especially those preparing crisis plans for schools and districts. The Crisis Guide:

• helps school and district leaders develop thoughtful, comprehensive crisis plans before an emergency strikes.
  identifies who should be on the planning team, tips for training staff prior to an emergency, and a checklist to evaluate the effectiveness of the plan.
• offers timely information on what to do during – and after – a crisis.
• includes information about on-line tools on the NEA HIN Web site such as sample letters to parents and staff, strategies for working with the media, volunteer check lists, tips for how to talk with students after a crisis, and classroom activities.

Legal Hazards Of Monitoring Off-Campus Speech In The Internet Age
By Marshall W. Grate
A public school district must exercise caution in monitoring off-campus speech. In Layshock v Hermitage School District, (WD PA 2007), a public school district was held to have violated the First Amendment rights of a senior high school student when it issued a 10-day suspension for his creation of a parody profile of the high school principal on the student’s MySpace.com website during non-school hours at the student’s grandmother’s computer.

The student introduced the unflattering parody at school to a few selected audiences. He accessed the profile from a computer in his Spanish class, and he showed it to other classmates. School administrators were unaware of any in-school attempt to access the MySpace website until one week later. After some effort the school administration blocked access to the website. 

The district charged the student with disruption of a normal school process, disrespect, harassment of a school administrator and gross misbehavior.

The student and his family sued the school district for violating his First Amendment rights under the United States Constitution.

The Federal District court ruled in the student’s favor. Interestingly, the court made its ruling after the United States Supreme Court issued its decision in Morse v Frederick, (June 25, 2007)(the “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” case), which ostensibly conferred considerable latitude on a school district in monitoring student speech.

However, the Layshock court distinguished Morse on the grounds that it involved school-related speech as opposed to off-campus speech. The fact that the Internet may be accessed at school does not authorize school officials to become censors of the World Wide Web.

Consequently, the Court applied, without reservation, the “substantial disruption” standard of Tinker v Des Moines Independent Community School District, (1969). Under this standard, the school district must demonstrate a nexus between the off-campus speech and a substantial disruption of the educational environment.

In the Layshock case, there was no substantial disruption. The district cancelled no classes; there was no widespread disorder; there was no violence; and there were no student disciplinary problems.

 One troubling aspect of the Layshock decision is the implication that the First Amendment will constrain a public school district from taking preventive action if it discovers plausible threats of violence.

However, the court indicated that it would have little difficulty supporting a school district’s discipline of a student who makes a direct threat at the school from a remote location or through the Internet where evidence of a direct threat is presented.  Even if the off campus speech is slanderous, the school district would not necessarily have the authority to impose punishment, unless the district could show substantial disruption in school operations.

The Layshock decision is from a federal district court in Pennsylvania and is not binding on federal or state courts in Michigan. Nonetheless, it is noteworthy for its message that school districts must balance First Amendment constitutional considerations against the effect off-campus speech may have on the school environment. Before taking action, the school district must be prepared to demonstrate that the off-campus speech risks substantial interference with school operations.

Should you have any questions about the Layshock decision or a school district’s right to discipline students for off-campus speech, please contact Marshall Grate at (616) 608-1103 or mgrate@clarkhill.com.

from School Law Matters

California Judge Determines School Dress Code Is Too Strict



by Andre F. Mayes

Upholding the principle that students do not “shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate,” a California state court judge recently blocked a middle school from enforcing a strict dress code policy. Scott v Napa Valley Unified School District, No. 26-37082 (Cal Super Ct July 2, 2007).

In 1998, Redwood Middle School adopted a student dress code policy to control an emerging problem with gangs in the school.

In 2005, the school revised the dress code policy to require that “all clothes will be plain (no pictures, patterns, stripes or logos of any size or kind.” The policy only allows solid-colored clothing in blue, white, green, yellow, khaki, gray, brown, and black; and prohibits jeans, denim, knit, sweat pants, sports-nylon, and fleece.

During the 2006-2007 school year several students were disciplined for wearing blue jeans, socks with the image of Winnie-the-Pooh’s Tigger character, an American Cancer Society pink ribbon for breast cancer awareness, a vintage high school sweatshirt, a backpack with the brand name “Jansport” written in red, a heart sticker on Valentine’s Day, a t-shirt with the words “D.A.R.E. to resist drugs and violence,” and a t-shirt reading “Jesus Freak.”

The students filed suit against the Napa Valley Unified School District and administrators, alleging the dress code policy violates their free speech rights guaranteed by the United States and California Constitutions.

In addressing the students’ free speech claims, the court cited the recent United States Supreme Court decision in Morse v Frederick, 127 S Ct 2618 (2007), as upholding the well-settled principle that student expression is protected as long as it does not “materially and substantially disrupt the work and discipline of the school.” Tinker v Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 US 503, 513 (1969). 

The students maintained that the dress code policy constitutes an absolute ban on expressive content and thereby violates Tinker. The students also maintained that the overbroad nature of the dress code policy resulted in students being disciplined for “wearing items that articulate protected expressive content.” Finally, the students argued that the broad restrictions on speech imposed by the dress code policy “bear no substantial relationship to the claimed purpose of the policy of deterring gang-related problems at school.”

The school district countered that although Tinker and its progeny stand for the proposition that students have a right to protection for purely political speech, recent federal case law makes it clear that students have no constitutionally protected right to make a fashion statement. Bly v Fort Thomas Public School District, (6th Cir 2005).

The court opined that since some of the students had, in fact, engaged in expressive conduct that conveyed a “particularized message subject to First Amendment protection,” the burden was on the school district to produce evidence that justifies the policy’s abridgement of the students’ Constitutional free speech rights. To meet its burden, the school district asserted that the dress code policy furthers the important governmental interests of providing a safe school environment and of preventing gang activity on campus by making it easy to distinguish Redwood students from campus intruders.

The court determined that while the dress code policy’s broad reach encompasses gang-related wear, the justification for the policy only demonstrated that it may facilitate the identification of outsiders who happen to come on campus wearing non-approved clothing. The court found that the dress code policy is not tailored to meet the school district’s legitimate gang-prevention concerns. The court emphasized, however, that “an appropriately tailored regulation of attire to prohibit gang-related apparel, symbols, etc. is constitutionally permissible.”

In light of this decision, it may be prudent for local school districts to review their student dress code policies to ensure that they are narrowly tailored to meet their stated purposes.

If you have any questions concerning the Scott decision or student dress code policies, please contact André F. Mayes at (248) 988-5893 or amayes@clarkhill.com, or your Clark Hill Education Law attorney.

Kalamazoo Promise Goes Statewide

The chair of the House Education Committee wants to replicate the so-called Kalamazoo Promise by creating local promise committees and funding them in part with state education dollars.

Rep. Tim MELTON (D-Auburn Hills) looks at the highly successful guaranteed college tuition program for school kids in Kalamazoo and wants to do the same thing in 41 other Michigan counties.

Melton’s legislation would allow “any urban or rural school district with students 18 and younger who are under the poverty level” to establish their own authority to encourage students to attend college. Each authority would establish its own ground rules including where the students could go to college and whether they have to stay in Michigan.

Once the by-laws are in place, each entity would have two years to raise the capital to fund the program at which point the state would step in with its part of the agreement.

Using the SET, or State Education Tax with $13 billion in its coffers, Melton says local authorities could get half of the growth revenue in that fund to apply to the tuition grants. Each district’s SET would grow at different levels depending on economic growth in that county.

“The idea is to change the mindset of students who might not think they can go to college,” Melton explains. This assistance is targeted at about 11 percent of the students who live in disadvantaged districts.

While the Kalamazoo program was fully funded by a local donor, Melton says other districts can use that approach or other means to raise the capitol to get the program off the ground.

The real estate and business climate in Kazoo is booming thanks to the free college program. Melton figures and hopes if it can happen there, why not in Detroit, Pontiac, Bay City, Saginaw and other needy portions of the state.

Senate OKs Teacher Registry/Fee Bill

Teacher certification fees would go up anywhere from $20 to $35 under a bill the Senate approved 29-7 today. The increase would pay for a $2.1 million update to the seven-year-old central database, which tracks how many professional development and continuing education hours teachers are taking.

Once the on-line registry is completed, teachers would be able to renew their teaching certificates on-line and pay for them with a credit card, according to HB 4591, sponsored by Rep. Hoon-Yung HOPGOOD (D-Taylor).

The state’s 34 teacher prep courses and specialty courses also would need government approval under the bill. In order to be state-certified, the small institutions of less than 2,000 students would pay $2,000 and larger institutions of more than 2,000 would pay $3,500. From there, they’d be required to pay a periodic $300 fee to be reviewed periodically.

Of the $1.7 million these fees are expected to generate, a chunk will go to pay for the new database. Another $200,000 would support teacher certification programs run through Central Michigan University and Wayne State University.

The bill marks the first time in 20 years teacher certification fees have been raised.

Recent reports on the prevalence of MRSA, and recent unfortunate student deaths associated with MRSA have prompted much telephone activity and many questions regarding available data in Michigan. Additionally questions regarding available educational resources have been received.

Individual case reports of MRSA are not reportable in Michigan; therefore prevalence rates for either Healthcare Associated –MRSA (HA-MRSA) or Community Associated –MRSA CA-MRSA) is unknown. Outbreaks, defined as “three or more culture positive cases in a facility or in a community that are epidemiologically linked where transmission/spread is plausible” are however, reportable to the local health jurisdiction.

MDCH has two educational brochures on prevention of MRSA and can be located as follows:
MDCH MRSA Prevention and Control Tri-Fold Brochure is available at:
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/MRSA_brochure_FINAL_167898_7.pdf
MDCH MRSA Prevention and Control Poster is available at:
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/MRSA_poster_FINAL_167902_7.pdf

Treatment guidelines for CA-MRSA are available at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/pdf/ar/CAMRSA_ExpMtgStrategies.pdf

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a website that provides information on prevention and control for both HA-MRSA and CA-MRSA, http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_mrsa.html and http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_mrsa_ca.html

Media Information http://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/community/media.htm

Massachusetts State Health- Schools and MRSA also has translated materials for MRSA in a variety of languages:
http://www.mass.gov/dph/cdc/antibiotic/mrsa_school_health.htm

Other Resources

The CDC has released a new website that will help answer many questions about managment of MRSA in schools. http://www.cdc.gov/Features/MRSAinSchools/

From Jim Ballard

MASSP Executive Director

MASSP is getting more phone calls from legislative staff and other association lobbyists regarding raising the compulsory school age to 18. In the past, when there is this much buzz, something is about to happen. My guess is that the move is about to be made to try to move House Bill 4042. Similar pressure is building on the Senate side for SB 11.

Governor Granholm, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, the State Board of Education, and leaders in the House have all come out in support of raising the compulsory school age. The School Board Association is also advocating for a change in the compulsory school age to 18.

But there is division within the education community. MASSP is saying it is the right thing to do, BUT there must be some things put in place before it is done (see MASSP article published in Detroit News , March 2007). We oppose a simple change in dates without amendments to allow certain students more options within the personal curriculum process and definitive language for alternative education.

We would support linking school attendance with withholding a student’s driver’s license if the reporting by the school and action taken by the Secretary of State are done within a very short timeframe. We haven’t sensed a majority support for this legislation. The bill is going to be pushed and possibility passed in the House. However, we don’t see support by Senate education leadership, at this time.

Moving the compulsory school age to 18 could be our Winter Break gift from our Legislature. We will have to be vigilant. If HB 4042 or SB 11 do become law, there will need to be some amendments to the bills in their current forms that provide for a transition period for our school communities and contain realistic alternatives for our students. Just changing the compulsory school age to 18, and expecting that all students will stay in school until they are 18 won’t won’t make it happen and dumps a new set of problems in the laps of our building leaders.

SERVICE REPEAL/BUSINESS TAX SURCHARGE PASSES HOUSE

On a 58 to 48 vote the House passed HB 5408, legislation that would repeal the services tax adopted a few weeks ago and replace it with a surcharge on the Michigan Business Tax (MBT).Under HB 5408 the surcharge would be 32.9 percent through 2008, and fall to 23.7 percent thereafter. The legislation also includes a $2 million cap, to limit the amount that larger companies would pay.

The legislation holds the School Aid Fund harmless. The earmarking of revenue to the School Aid Fund would be adjusted in order to hold the SAF harmless from the switch from the services tax to the MBT surcharge. This would involve the additional earmarking of $205 million in FY 2008 and $250 million in FY 2009.

At this point the legislation does not have support in the Senate. Senate Republicans oppose HB 5408, primarily because it would be a permanent tax. In addition, the Senate Republicans say they want to take a look at some other possible alternatives as well. They will spend the next two weeks looking at alternative plans.

If the issue of the repeal is to be tackled; it has to be taken care of this month because the service tax is scheduled to be implemented on Dec. 1.

MASSP has joined with MDE, MVU, Microsoft, and Traverse Bay Area ISD to offer a one-time bonus stipend of $1,000 to schools who make a two-year commitment to adopt and implement CareerForward ™ in their middle school or high school classrooms.

CareerForward ™ is designed to help Michigan students understand how to plan their work lives and career opportunities amid the implications of the global economy. This award-winning, no-cost online course is a powerful means for Michigan students to satisfy the new Michigan Merit Curriculum requirements for an online course.

CareerForward ™ now comes in three versions to allow schools to select the version that best fits the needs of your school or district:

• MVU-hosted Web-based Course
• MVU-hosted Blackboard CMS
• School-hosted Blackboard/Moodle CMS

For a detailed description of each version, click here.

To apply for the $1,000 incentive bonus, complete these easy steps:

Step One: Register to use CareerForward ™ at the Michigan Virtual University. Please print a copy of your registration to include with the application.

Step Two: Complete the Application for cFWD Grant Funds. Click here for the application. Application must include:

• The number of participating students per grade
• A list of Universal Identification Codes (UIC) for each participating student
• Participating teachers by grade level
• A narrative that describes how the stipend will be used
• Authorizing signature(s)

Submit the completed application and a copy of your cFWD registration either electronically or by mail to:

Diane McMillan, Associate Director, MASSP, 1101 Centennial Way, Suite 100, Lansing, MI 48917

Rosemary Hagan, Instructional Services Specialist, Traverse Bay Area ISD, P.O. Box 6020, Traverse City, MI 49696-6020

Upon determination of eligibility, the Traverse Bay Area ISD will issue a check for $1,000 to your school. Grant funds are limited, so we will operate on a first-come, first serve basis! Register today!

On October 8, 2007, 5 schools gathered to receive training on a great new school improvement program called RSVP: Raising Student Voice and Participation. The schools in attendance: Grayling HS, Grand Blanc HS East, Franklin (Livonia) HS, Milan HS and Hudsonville HS.

These schools spent a half-day in Lansing preparing to take back to their schools a program that will provide an avenue for student-led changes and school improvement. What’s so special about this program? It actually allows every student, yes, EVERY STUDENT in the school, to have a voice.

Raising Student Voice & Participation (RSVP) is a new student engagement program sponsored by the National Association of Student Councils that can be easily integrated into student council programs. RSVP has been developed as a means to involve and empower students to identify issues in their schools and communities and to take steps to address and resolve them. In RSVP, student council leaders are involved from the initial phase of planning and facilitating student summits that engage entire student bodies, to assembling student action teams that will carry out plans for resolving those concerns identified in the summits.

The RSVP program is anchored in the vision and beliefs of the National Association of Student Councils. It also supports the NASSP report Breaking Ranks II: Strategies for Leading High School Reform by providing principals with a way to utilize the leadership of their student councils. Students trained to run the RSVP program in their schools will use NASC-identified leadership skills necessary to successfully facilitate student summits and manage civic action initiatives.

Purpose:

• The RSVP program will give student council leaders the training and resources to:
• Reach out and engage all student populations in civic-based activities
• Facilitate student summits that will identify significant issues that students wish to address through dialogue and civic action
• Extend leadership opportunities and positions to non-elected students on student council-led initiatives
• Establish a process and framework for developing and implementing student-led action projects to address issues
• Assist principals in identifying and recruiting non-elected students to serve on various school committees

At-A-Glance:
The RSVP process begins with student leaders being trained as facilitators. They then host a series of student summits where any member of the student body can speak up and share issues and concerns about school and community.

Through the summits, the student body identifies its three top issues that the leadership team uses to form civic action plans. Those plans are presented to the school administration for approval and then finalized for presentation to the student body. From there, student leaders recruit interested students to assist in implementing the civic action plans.

Throughout the process students learn about the power of voice and the skills necessary to plan and work together towards making a positive change.

Watch for future RSVP Trainings throughout Michigan!

From the MDE Website

State Board Approves Content Expectations for State’s K-12 Social Studies Classes

October 1, 2007

LANSING – The State Board of Education unanimously approved today the state’s new Social Studies content expectations for grades K-12.

These are the first updates to Michigan ’s Social Studies standards since 1996. They reflect several years of study, review, revision, and public input.

“The Social Studies expectations are the culmination of several years of development and involvement of content and subject experts, educators, national review, and public input,” said State Board of Education President Kathleen N. Straus.

“We had valuable input from the public, both at our meetings and on-line,” she said. “We think we have one of the most outstanding Social Studies curriculums in the country.”

The Social Studies content expectations cover History, Civics and Government, Geography, and Economics, and are aligned with national standards.

Of special interest to State Board members was the importance of civics and government, and teaching children how to become better engaged in their local, state, and federal governments.

“Students not only need to know the ‘what’ about civics and government,” said State Board member Nancy Danhof, “they need to know ‘how, when, and where’ they can become actual participants in their government.”

Amendments were made to the proposed curriculum expectations to drive citizen participation in their government, as well as amendments to include personal finance education throughout the K-12 system; teach Michigan history beyond statehood in the fourth grade; and highlight the leadership roles of multi-cultural individuals in civic participation that affected positive change throughout the history of the United State.

Download the High School Social Studies Content Expectations here.

Link to the K-8 Social Studies Grade Level Content Expectations here.
(The board has requested that additional Michigan history expectations that reflect Michigan history beyond statehood be added to the fourth grade content expectations. Therefore the third and fourth grade expectations are currently in draft form. The final expectations will be completed by mid-November.)

By Diane McMillan

Associate Director

I’ve come across several interesting articles and blogs about Middle Level instruction in the past two weeks and I’d like to pass the knowledge along. Many of these articles are tagged on our website’s del.ic.ous social bookmarking site. Check out our new website www.mymassp.com. Renew your MASSP membership for the maximum benefits.

Teaching Secrets: Organizing Middle School Students

This article outlines ways to teach organization skills to middle level students.

NASSP’s Middle Level Blog

Regular blogger offer reflections on Middle Level leadership.

Don’t forget to check out our Breaking Ranks in the Middle Two Day Seminar November 7th and 8th at the Macomb ISD. This training is a must for Middle Level school leaders who are interested in middle level redesign and innovation. Sign up here.